Counting the Days to the 4th Global Mental Health Advocacy Forum 2026!
The 4th Global Mental Health Advocacy Forum 2026 is right around the corner! Are you ready to join us and reshape global mental health advocacy together? We are thrilled to gather in Iloilo City, Philippines, for what will be a turning point for our movement with an ever relevant theme: "Reimagining Global Mental Health: No Voice Left Behind."
What does this turning point look like at the upcoming Forum? Let’s take deeper view into the three days of action, connection, and strategy that await us at the Global Mental Health Advocacy Forum 2026:
Day “Zero”: A Deep Look into Local and Core Issues
The Forum starts with a day of smaller, action-oriented sessions designed to connect us with the local context of Iloilo and address in-depth issues in our communities:
In the morning, attendees will follow a variety of pre-registered site visits. These sessions include activities such as guided story-telling on Filipino Indigenous care practices, to “Amlig sa Syudad” which is a World Café focused on Iloilo's local mental health advocacy work. Other options include reviewing the connection between urban design and wellbeing in the "Beauty and the Brain" tour, a Mindful Walking Experience, or Mindful Yoga by the riverside.
The afternoon is for collaborative, solutions-focused workshops. Sessions cover:
Movement to advance the deinstitutionalisation of mental health care.
Breaking down mental health innovations and discovering the tools and obstacles that turn them from ideas to scaled impact.
Deeper discussion on mental health task-sharing that prioritizes lived experience to narrow the treatment gap.
Addressing the mental health experiences of climate-concerned youth.
Integrating mental health into Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and confronting global challenges.
Transitioning approach to suicide prevention from a punitive model to compassionate ones.
The end of day “zero” marks the official start of the Forum with a Welcome Reception, where we will celebrate local culture and network with fellow advocates from all sectors.
Day One: Strategy, Funding, and Local Wisdom
Day One of the Forum shifts to a plenary format, concentrating on high-level strategy and multiple aspects of accountability in mental health advocacy.
The day opens with an Inspiration Session, followed by a Keynote Talk: “Being Fundable and Findable” with Kevin L. Brown. This session inspires us to focus on becoming strategically ready to fund our advocacy.
The midday panel, “Self, Society, and System: A Holistic Spotlight on Philippine Mental Health Initiatives,” will bring forward practical knowledge from community-led advocacy in the Philippines.
In the afternoon, the Forum shifts to a global focus with a panel on “Looking back and looking forward beyond the United Nations High-Level Meeting” and discussing how we turn global commitments into long-lasting reforms.
Day One concludes with a workshop: “Mapping the Geography of Stigma,” where you can share your lived experiences to inform a new advocacy toolkit, making certain global resources are founded in real cultural contexts.
Day Two: Power, Policy, and Inclusion
The final day focuses on the dynamics of systems change, power relations, while making certain that “No Voice is Left Behind” in any mental health advocacy.
Day Two starts with a zoom into to a systemic view. The “Influencing and Being Influenced” panel will discuss the reality of shaping mental health policy with fellow advocates, including politicians that deal with power struggles of the system.
Right before lunch, the Forum is followed by the panel and workshop, “Don’t Follow the Money: Rebuilding Mental Health Financing and Power Around People,” where we will plan together with international donors and advocates to make certain funding priorities match local needs.
The after lunch sessions will discuss the “Reimagining Global Mental Health Through LGBTQI+ Lenses,” and show how these experiences reveal deeper systemic challenges in our care models.
The Forum ends with the “From Youth Engagement to Youth Leadership” panel, moving past seeing young people as only beneficiaries and recognizing them as planners of cultural and systemic change.
Looking forward to welcoming you!
From the quiet moments of mindful walking to the bold discussions on policy and funding, every session at the Global Mental Health Advocacy Forum 2026 was well tailored to what we need as mental health advocates today.
The GMHAN Secretariat, #MentalHealthPH and all of our partners are excited to welcome you all amazing advocates to the 4th Global Mental Health Advocacy Forum in IloIlo city!
Missed out on registering? Stay tuned and engage on our Circle platform or get involved with our Working Group activities, Webinars and Knowledge Exchange sessions!